When Love and Hate Collide: the Passing
by DragonGamer0713
Summary: My story's own DLC! LOL! Instead of meeting the rest of the group at the Motel 6, Chris and Sheila meet them after a con on the way to Rayford. Special cameo appearances!


"Alright. Try this one for size! Darth Maul or Grievous?" I teased at Sheila.

She retched at both choices and hissed at me, "You're disgusting!"

I shrugged, "Be lucky I didn't say Jar Jar. Choice your man!"

She growled and muttered, "Maul. Grievous has a steel dick!"

I howled in laughter as we walked down the abandoned road. She shoved me into the road with annoyance. "Well, I guess Maul has a tattooed dick!"

She groaned as she placed her hands on her head. "Bad mental image! Thanks, Chris! I hate you for the moment."

I held onto my sides as I snorted from my laughing. "You're welcome, Sheila. Your turn."

She replied, "No more of this game. We've been playing this game ever since we started walking on this road. That was hours ago."

I sighed, "Fine. What do you want to play? 'I Spy'?"

She rolled her eyes and said, "No. I just want to find more people."

I looked on the road and pointed at the dead zombies, "I found people for you."

She cocked her eyebrow and added, "People who are not zombies."

As if by fate, Sheila looked behind us and saw moving car headlights. She gasped as she hit my arm. "What is it?" I asked.

"People! Hold your thumb out!" she shouted excitedly as she held her thumb out to hitchhike.

I scoffed, "Take it from someone who's tried hitchhiking: the thumb doesn't really work! You give them a reason to stop!"

She huffed, "How would you get them to stop, Ms. Con Artist?"

I grinned, "Toss a body into the car and play dead in the confusion. You act like you're upset."

She rolled her eyes as I dragged a dead body off the road and onto my shoulder, "This isn't going to work."

I huffed over the weight, "Trust me. It will. I'll be fair. I'll reward you if this works."

We waited for the car to get close enough to launch our dummy onto the hood. Within seconds, I tossed the body in front of the car and we heard it thump against it, with a bone-crushing sound. The driver hit the brakes and the car went into a spin, since the road was littered with slippery guts and blood. I ran ahead and went into the middle of the road and lay onto the ground, pretending to be dead.

The car stopped spinning and the driver began shouting as if he was on a rollercoaster. "Y'all, let's do that again!" The Southern accent struck Sheila's ears like angels singing. She loves accents.

His comment was countered by feminine voice, "I don't think so, Ellis. I feel like I'm going to puke."

A deep voice added with hers, "Me too. You're not driving this car again."

The driver, Ellis groaned, "Aww come on, Coach. I love this car."

A snarky voice hissed in the back, "Overalls! Did you notice that we were hit by something?"

Ellis looked over his shoulder and hissed back, "I'm perfectly aware of that, Nick!"

Sheila began her act by crying and running towards the driver's window. Ellis was startled, thinking Sheila was a witch. But after a few seconds, he rolled the window down and asked, "Are you 'k, darlin'? Did I hit ya?"

She mocked sobbed, "No. You hit my best friend!"

Ellis paled as he turned the ignition off and whispered, "Oh shit. I'm so sorry." She stepped away from the window and watched Ellis slip out. His passengers followed his lead. Ellis over to Sheila and embraced her to comfort her.

She embraced back, adding to her act. "She tried to get your attention, but her timing was off and…and…" she began to wail into his shoulder. Ellis held her tighter and began rubbing her back.

Ellis whispered, "I'm truly sorry, darlin'. I really am. I wish I saw her a second later."

The snarky voice snapped, "It's ironic that you killed the bitch and yet, you're the one holding her best friend for comfort."

Ellis turned his head towards the voice and hissed, "Shut up, Nick!" Sheila looked up and saw the guy she guessed was Nick.

Nick was a man in his mid-thirties with a white suit on, stained with bile and blood. He had black hair that was gelled or at least slicked back. Several rings adorned on his fingers as he tapped his Assault rifle. He had piecing green eyes that could scare a wolf in the dark. From the tone in his voice, Sheila could tell he wasn't the easiest person to get along with.

"Enough, you two!" the woman shouted at the two man, "Do you think we should at least find the girl's body?"

The big, burly man replied, "Good idea, Rochelle."

Rochelle was a black woman in her late-twenties with her hair up in a spiky pony tail-looking style. She wore a pink shirt that had Depeche Mode on it. To Sheila, she seemed nice enough to talk to, but stubborn enough to avoid being a push-over.

The hefty man beside her walked over to Ellis and pried the country boy off Sheila. "Sorry, young'un. He can't control himself sometimes. I'm Coach. What's your name?"

She wiped her eyes clear with her sleeve and replied, "I'm Sheila."

"Well, Sheila, let's go find your friend. Maybe she's still alive."

She sniffled, "Ok. I hope so."

Coach let go of Ellis's collar and rounded up the rest of his teammates. Sheila followed them and she gasped as they found me. Thanks to the blood on my clothes from the zombie fighting earlier, it gave me a very bloody appearance. Ellis placed his hand over his mouth, feeling guilty about hitting me.

Nick scoffed, "It'll be a miracle if she survived."

Rochelle smacked the back of Nick's head and snapped, "Shut up, Nick!" She walked over to me and checked my pulse. She gasped, "She's still alive!"

This fact shocked the new survivors. Ellis beamed, "Oh thank you, God! No innocent blood on my soul."

Nick kneeled down beside me and tested my pulse on my neck as a second resort. Sure enough, Rochelle was right; I had a pulse and I am alive. "Holy shit. No way."

Coach told Nick, "Lift her up and place her on the hood."

Nick sighed as he snaked his arms under my body. He lifted me into his arms and my head leaned against his shoulder. I opened one eye and saw my carrier. He was handsome, I'll admit that. I let my arm hang by his leg and I stealthily pick pocketed him. Sheila saw my act and glared at me. My open eye bugged out and I played dead again. I slipped his wallet into my sleeve.

Nick gently placed me on the hood of the car. Sheila came running and snarled at me, "Enough of this, Chris! Give Nick his wallet back!"

The man looked at her confused, "Wait, what are you saying?"

I gulped, alerting Nick of my sudden consciousness. Sheila hit my arm, causing me to softly yelp. "Quit it. I can't con these people anymore!"

I sat up and shrugged, "Whatever."

Nick took a step back and hissed, "You conned us?"

I slid off the hood and replied, "I conned you guys. Sheila just acted sad to make it believable. You guys are too easy."

Nick grabbed my collar and pinned me down on the hood. "You're a con artist?"

I winked at him, "One of the best, Sparky."

Nick gulped as his grip grew tighter. Ellis, Coach and Rochelle pried Nick off me. "She conned us!" Nick hissed.

Ellis chuckled, "The con man got conned? That's a good one, Nick."

I walked over to the red neck and shook his hand, "Hiya. I'm Christina, but call me Chris. And yes, I did con you guys, but it was for a good cause. Sheila and I have been fighting zombies all day and we needed to see other survivors."

Coach asked, "Then why didn't you use hitchhiker's thumb?"

Sheila scowled at me as she hit my upside the head, "You're such a bitch! I told you!"

I hissed, "Ow! Ok, ok! I'm a bitch! What else is new?"

She grumbled to Nick, "Check your pockets."

He stuffed his hands down his pockets and gasped, "She pick pocketed me! That sneaky bitch!"

I began snickering. Nick tackled me back onto the hood and snarled, "Give me my wallet or I'll make you very sorry!"

I scoffed, "I'd love to see you try, hot shot. I've see con artists like you and let's just say they hardly made it away from me with their life savings or their sanity intact."

He asked, "Is that a threat, sweetheart?"

I smiled at him, "That depends." Nick chuckled nervously. I pulled the wallet out of my sleeve like a poker card and teased Nick. He growled as he tried to get it from me. I chuckled, "Reach for it, hot shot!" He reached for it and snatched it away from me, but not before glaring at me. I just rolled my eyes and quipped, "You can get off me now, Sparky." His heart was doing flips at my smile.

He scrambled off my body and sighed romantically to himself. I stood up and brushed myself off. Ellis chuckled, "Sneaky, cunning, and devious. She's your type of gal, Nick!"

Nick huffed, "Shut up, Ellis." However, he couldn't deny it. He normally doesn't believe in love at first sight, but my con won him over.

Rochelle laughed, "Just admit it, Nick. He's right."

Nick decided to just shrug. Coach chuckled. Sheila asked, "So where are you guys headed?"

Coach replied, "New Orleans. You two want to come with us?"

Sheila nodded, "Hell yeah!"

I shrugged, "I'm all for going with you guys. Sure. Count us in."

Ellis beamed, "Sweet! Welcome to the team!"

Nick groaned, "That's what this team needs: a hot, female con artist."

Rochelle giggled, "Did you just call her hot?"

Nick blushed, "Yeah."

Everyone began laughing, expect for me. "Excuse me, Nick?"

He looked at me and winked. I gulped. Sheila slapped my back and teased, "You've got a keeper!"

I growled, "Shut up, Sheila!"

Ellis slid into the driver's seat again and honked the horn. "Let's get a move on! New Orleans awaits us!"

Coach grabbed Ellis's collar again and pulled him out of the window. "I'm driving, Ellis!"

He groaned, "Coach! Urgh, fine. I call…"

Rochelle interrupted, "Shot gun!"

Ellis snapped his fingers. "Shit! You beat me to it, Ro!"

She laughed, "Sorry, sweetie. Maybe next time."

He sighed as he slid into the back. Sheila slipped into the middle next to him. She blushed, "Hi!"

He blushed back, "Hey, darlin'!"

I was about to slide in, but Nick stopped me. "After me, sweetheart."

I growled, "Why should I?"

He slipped in and sat down. He grinned, "So you can sit on my lap."

I shouted, "Hell no! I'm jogging!"

Coach laughed, "You need to be the Flash if you want to keep up with this car. This is Jimmy Gibbs Jr.'s stock car."

I groaned, "This car is awesome and all, but why must I sit on Nick's lap?"

Rochelle chuckled, "Because he's desperate as hell! He really likes you."

I groaned as I slipped through the window and gingerly sat on Nick's lap. He grinned while I blushed. Sheila had to hold her tongue to avoid laughing at me. Ellis snickered at the sight. I flipped him off as Nick wrapped his arms around my waist. My muscles tightened to his touch. He chuckled as he whispered in my ear, "Relax, sweetheart. Just enjoy the ride."

I growled back, "It'll be more enjoyable if I had my own seat!"

He chuckled as his breath trickled the hairs on the back of my neck. I did my best to keep my head forward away from Nick. Coach began driving the car down the road; we're on our way to New Orleans.

30 minutes pass by. Rochelle is asleep on shotgun, Sheila is barely awake, and Ellis is out like a light. Coach was driving, so he needs to stay awake. My neck is killing me for leaning forward for 30 minutes straight. Nick placed his chin on my shoulder and said, "You can lean on me, you know?"

I growled, "No thanks."

Nick shrugged, "You'll be more comfortable if you do, sweetheart. Your neck wouldn't last forever."

I snapped, "Are you a vampire? I'm fine."

He chuckled, "I'm no vampire. And, yes. You are fine."

I growled, "That's not what I meant! I'm comfortable fine, not hot fine!"

He whispered, "I beg to differ."

I blushed slightly and I felt Nick's grip get a little tighter. "Nick, what are you trying to do?"

He replied, "Just getting comfortable. You should too. You feel a little warmer than you did a few minutes ago."

I snapped, "It's my hoodie. It's hot in this car."

He allowed me to sit up and he said, "Then take it off. Make yourself comfortable. It's a long road trip, sweetheart."

I growled as I unzipped my hoodie, "Quit calling me 'sweetheart'. I am not your sweetheart! Call me by my name!"

He shrugged, "Ok, Christina."

I pulled my hoodie off with a huff, "Do you enjoy torturing me, Nicolas?"

He chuckled, "I try not to. It comes naturally. By the way, I hate being called 'Nicolas'."

I said, "Fine. I'll call you Nick, if you call me Chris. Got it, Sparky?"

He smiled, "Is 'Sparky' your pet name for me?"

I scoffed, "No! It's not a pet name. We're not together."

He shrugged, "I wouldn't mind if we were."

I hissed, "No way. Not even if you're the last man on Earth."

He sighed as he wrapped his arms around me again, "Ok. I can take a hint. But still. Get comfortable, Chris. Lean on me."

I sighed at his determination. Finally, I give in and leaned on his body. My head rested on his shoulder. He sighed romantically as he tilted his head against mine. I whispered, "If this is your idea of foreplay, I'll hit you in the balls hard."

He chuckled, "Nope. Just enjoying your company. That's all."

I huffed, "Enjoy it while you can, Nick. This will be the only time you will have me this close."

He hummed into the skin of my neck, "Will do."

I groaned in defeat. Nick means well, I guess and he's not denying a thing. He called me fine! He truly likes me, but why? Is it because I'm the female version of him? Or maybe I pulled a con on him that was too risky for anyone to do. Whatever the reason, he really likes me and in this situation, it's best not to fall in love with a fellow con artist. However, I will admit, he does have strong arms, taut chest, fluffy hair, a sweet voice, and makes a very comfy pillow.

Sleep began to overcome me, but I refused to fall. Nick sensed that I was getting tired, so he whispered in my ear, "Go ahead. Get some sleep. I'm quite tired myself." He yawned to prove his tiredness.

I giggled at him, which made him smile. He snuggled his face into my neck, making my skin shiver. Why is he doing this? Does he really, really love me? If he does, then why doesn't he say so? Is he afraid of getting shot down by me? I don't know, but what I do know is that he's quite the smooth criminal. And a very sexy one at that.

I sighed as my eyes closed and my head moved to the side. Nick's slow breathing lulled me to sleep. I feel suddenly very safe in his company for some odd reason. I softly heard him whisper, "Night, Chris." Then something soft and warm connected with the skin on my cheek. I smiled instantly as I snuggled into his neck. He smiled as he rested his head onto mine. Sheila saw it in the corner of her eye and she grinned evilly. She chuckled as she too fell asleep on Ellis's shoulder.

I was awaken by the brakes suddenly getting slammed. Everyone flew forward, thanks to no seat belts. Nick slammed against me, causing the wind to get knocked out of me.

Coach asked, "Is everyone ok?"

I wheezed, "Once I get this guy off me!"

Ellis said, "Just a bump on the head. I'm fine."

Sheila added, "I'm ok."

Ro answered, "I'm good."

Nick concluded, "Ditto." Nick sat back and I fell back onto him again, earning a huff. Coach began to climb out of the car, so I quickly followed his lead. Nick sighed as he followed me out. "Are you ok?"

I growled, "No. I'm not. Just get the fuck away from me."

Ro, Ellis, and Sheila climbed out of the car. Sheila quickly tugged on my arm and embarrassedly chuckled, "Excuse us, Nick." He just nodded as he watched Sheila drag me away to the front of the car.

I pulled out of her grip and asked, "What now?"

She growled, "Cut Nick some slack. He's falling head-over-heels for you. Why can't you see it? He loves you."

I replied, "Secretly, I'm deeply flattered that he likes me so much, but this is a zombie apocalypse. No love."

She face-palmed herself and said, "You're lucky! You found a con man with the same balls as you!"

I gasped as I placed my hands on my hips, "What does that supposed to mean?"

She giggled and explained, "The same canonizes as him. How's that?"

I sighed, "That's better. Anyway, he's chasing my tail almost as much as Tim Allen chasing Sigourney Weaver's tail in the movie 'Galaxy Quest'."

Sheila chuckled, "Science nerd. Good comparison though. But it's true."

I was about to say something, when a different voice broke through our conversation. "Hello down there!"

We looked up and saw a teenage girl on the cat walk above the drawn bridge. She had messy brown hair in a pony tail, was wearing a dirty red wind breaker and jeans. She looked down on us with a small grin on her face.

Sheila waved at her, "Hi! Good to see an undead face!"

She replied, "Same here! I'm Zoey!"

I shouted up to her, "Hey, Zoey! I'm Chris and this is my best friend, Sheila! But sadly, that's not all of us!"

Zoey looked beyond us and saw the four remaining survivors. She shouted to them, "Hey!"

They looked up and saw her. Ro sighed with relief, "Oh thank God! I thought I was going to be the last woman on Earth!"

Sheila and I glared at her. Ro caught our glares and chuckled nervously, "Sorry, you two. I didn't mean that."

Sheila shrugged it off, "It's ok, Rochelle."

I just rolled my eyes and went, "Ner. Whatever."

Nick walked up to me, but I quickly retreated. Zoey saw this and chuckled, "Boyfriend of yours?"

I scoffed, "He wishes. This is Nick. The red neck is Ellis. The big guy is Coach. And the happy girl is Rochelle. Hey, is it possible that you can lower the bridge for us? Please?"

Zoey frowned, "Sorry, I can't."

Nick shouted up to her, "That's terrific, cupcake. Is there a man we can talk to up there?"

Zoey hissed at him, "I can shoot you where you stand!"

I beamed, "I'll hold him still for ya! I don't mind!"

Nick called, "Hey, lighten up!" Then he muttered under his breath, "Man, no one can take a joke anymore."

Suddenly, another body staggered onto the cat walk, next to Zoey. The body chuckled, "Did someone call for a man?"

Zoey rolled her eyes and grumbled, "You're no man, Alex."

Alex scoffed as he whipped his hair back, "That's bullshit! You and I are one, Zoey." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders in a relaxed manner as if he owned her.

She casually took his arm off her shoulders and replied, "That was one night only, Alex. Don't get cocky."

Ellis looked up and gasped, "Holy shit! Alex!"

Alex looked down and nearly fell off the cat walk, "Ellis? No fucking way! Hey, bro!"

Ellis ran as close to the cat walk as possible and beamed, "You're alive! Thank God!"

Alex looked down at his older brother and smirked, "You can't keep a good Bucker down!"

Ellis chuckled, "That's so true!"

I stated, "You never told us you had a brother, Ellis."

He turned to me and shrugged, "The 'family' question never came up, Chris."

I nodded, "Touché."

Nick asked me, "Do you…have a…?"

I growled, "No. But you're not getting lucky either. Quit while you're ahead, Nick."

He huffed, "I can try right? I can risk it. I'm a gambler, you know."

I snarled, "If you dare pulling a move on me, you're going to risk losing not only your sanity, but also your balls!" Ellis, Coach, and Alex hissed at the mere thought of losing their balls. Nick frowned and sighed.

Coach shouted to break the moment, "What can you do?"

Alex leaned over the railing and replied, "You guys are goin' have ta go under the river."

Nick cocked his head, "Wait. It's a tunnel under the river?"

I shrugged, confused, "No fucking clue. I guess we have to wing it."

Sheila waved up to Zoey and Alex, "Thanks! Meet you guys later!"

They nodded and we began walking towards the drug stores. I grabbed a katana and led the way. Nick followed closely behind. Sheila had to chuckle. Ro smirked at the con man's actions. Ellis thought the idea of me being followed was kind of cute. Especially since the follower was Nick, the no nonsense, badass con artist, ready to attack you if you cross the line. I ignored him to the best of my ability.

I was at my wits end with Nick when we stumbled across a park wedding. I was about to snap at him, until he quickly grabbed me and pulled me down, whispering, "Careful. I've seen a bride just like that before." I growled like a rabid dog in response. There was a witch at the altar, in a white wedding dress.

Ellis asked with good humor, "Do you think she's crying because she got left at the altar?"

Ro replied, "No clue, Ellis."

Sheila replied, "You were married once, Nick?"

He nodded, "Yeah. Legally divorced though."

Ellis chuckled, "You better let go of Chris before she bites your hand." Nick heeded Ellis's warning and let me go. I stood up and walked away from him.

Sheila caught up with me, "Come on. He's a guy. You're type of guy. You've been ignoring him all night. Say something to him."

I scoffed, "And have him following me around, begging for more? Hmph. I'll pass."

Sheila sighed as we carefully navigated through the wedding. I saw an axe inside one of the tents, so it replaced my old katana as a melee weapon. Coach was searching for cake, which made me chuckle. Even during an apocalypse, you can't deny your sweet tooth. Ellis and Ro were whispering about marriage and weddings. Sheila was just watching Nick, who was just staring at me.

Nick sighed as he leaned against something: the radio. The music began playing; the song was "Save Me Some Sugar" by the Midnight Riders. The music not only alerted us, but it also startled the witch bride. Ellis screamed horrified, "Here comes the bride!"

The witch charged towards Nick, with her claws raised and at the ready to tear her disturber to shreds. Nick backpedalled away, firing at her with his combat rifle, but it wasn't enough to stop her in time. She slashed his chest, forcing him to fall onto his back, bleeding uncontrollably.

I bolted towards my fallen comrade with the axe in my hands. I screamed at the witch, "Hey, bitch! Beat this!"

She snarled at me as I leaped sideways ninja-style and impaled my axe into her eyes, half way through her head. My jump made me land on Nick, who yelped in pain. I quickly scrambled off and kicked the witch's body off my axe. Blood and brain stained my weapon as I examined it. Nick looked at me as if I were the Goddess of War. I sat up and groaned, "Why did I do a stupid stunt like that?"

Nick replied, "I'm glad you did. You saved my life. I love you."

I sprang to my feet and warned, "But I don't. Once again, Nick, quit while you're ahead."

He sighed, "I can't. My heart is set."

I scoffed as I offered my hand to him, "I didn't know male con artists had hearts. Everyone I ran into were complete asses."

He chuckled as he grabbed my hand, "How many did you know before me?"

I pulled him to his feet and replied, "That's for me to know and for you to never find out."

He pushed on his chest to help stop the bleeding, stating, "If you hate me so much, then why did you save me from the witch?"

His question made me stop and think. I guess, deep in my heart, I wanted to help him. When he was in trouble, my softer side emerged and rescued him from certain death. Everyone began running back to us, seeing my whole ninja display and Nick's near-death experience.

Sheila asked, "Are you ok? Did the witch get you?"

I shook my head, but Ro answered for me, "Hell no! Chris got her…good! Sweet damn, I've never seen a kill like that!"

I shrugged, "Spur of the moment."

Ellis smirked, "A spur of love for Nick."

I growled, "Hey. I can do the same thing to you, buddy. Watch yourself, Ellis!"

He just rolled his eyes at my empty threat. Coach saw how badly Nick was injured and hissed with sympathy, "Damn, Nick. That witch got you good. We must stop somewhere safe for awhile so you can get patched up."

Nick nodded and hobbled next to me. I groaned as a result. Sheila laughed, "Will you relax, Chris? Just protect him until we get somewhere safe."

I huffed, "I should've let the witch kill him."

Ro snapped, "That was cold, Chris. Even for you."

"You don't even know me! None of you do! Except Sheila."

Everyone stared at me awkwardly. Nick sighed and brushed by me. "Let's go. The quicker the better."

I replied, "The best idea I've heard all day."

The group of survivors trekked through the city, shooting zombies left and right. A Hunter almost pounced Nick, but thanks to my quick thinking and protectiveness, I shot it while it was sailing through the air. Nick was amazed at my sharpshooting skills, but he remained quiet about it. Apparently, Nick became a zombie magnet. I fought off zombies as if there was no tomorrow. At our odds, there wasn't.

We came a across a tattoo parlor, which make Ellis extremely happy. "Tattoos!" he shouted as we walked in. "Man, I love tattoos. I only have one, but I was going to have truck tattooed on my other arm. Damn zombies."

I chuckled as I said to the redneck, "I've got two tattoos. One on my hand and the other on my back. Since I've been mauled by zombies for a good hour and a half, my shirt is torn enough for it to be seen."

Sheila laughed, "The only reason you're mauled is because you were protecting your con man."

I huffed, "Bullshit."

Coach and Ro began laughing while Nick blushed. Ellis walked to the back of me and saw my dragon tattoo on my left shoulder blade: (looks like this)

Ellis whistled, "Nice ink! Tribal! Sweet choice.

I replied, "Thanks, Ellis."

Nick's face paled from the lack of blood. I ushered Nick to one of the chairs and forced him down. He groaned, "A little rough, aren't ya?"

I replied, "I've taken zombies for you, but I'm not going to carry you to the chair."

He nodded, "Thanks for protecting me."

I was going to snap, but a quick slap of my inner feelings kicked in. "You're welcome, Nick. Now don't say I don't do anything for ya."

He chuckled and watched me walk away. Coach and Ellis walked up to him after a few seconds. He was confused. The look on his face made the boys laugh.

Coach asked, "Did you expect Chris to heal ya?"

Without saying too much, he nodded shyly. This ignited their laughter to the point of snorting like pigs. Nick's pale face got slightly redder. Ellis snorted, "Sorry, brother! She wants us to heal ya!"

Nick snapped his fingers and cursed, "Shit."

While the boys patched up Nick, Ro and Sheila began talking to me. Obviously about Nick.

Sheila started off the conversation, "You actually said something to Nick without being snappy or sarcastic."

I crossed my arms across my chest, "So?"

Ro replied, "You like him. He's beginning to grow on you."

I scoffed, "That's bullshit. I had to defend the guy. A simple 'thank you' was all I needed from him. Nothing more and nothing less."

Sheila shoved my shoulder playfully and said, "You like him! Just admit it!"

My voice growled no, but my eyes and smirk said yes. I began blushing over the thought of liking Nick. He did say he loved me after I saved his ass from the witch. Plus, I protected him from many hordes and Special Infected while he was wounded. I've got the scratches and torn clothes to prove it.

Ro smirked at my blushing face, "Oh! Look here! You're blushing!"

I quickly covered my face with my hands, but by now it was too late to hide it, "Shut up!"

Ro added, "Don't worry about it. He's hot for you too. He wanted you to fix him up, not Coach and Ellis."

I asked, "Can they hear us from here?"

Sheila scoffed loosely, "Of course not."

I cocked my eyebrow and asked, "You sure? Because if I speak my heart out, then I don't want the boys to hear me."

Ro, Sheila and I looked back towards the chairs and noticed Coach holding Nick down while Ellis wrapped the gauze around his chest. The way they looks make me burst into uncontrollable laughter. I hit the floor and began holding my sides as they began to hurt. I heard Nick snap, "Very funny, sweetheart!"

Ellis finished his patch job and Nick took his jacket off the chair, kneeling before me. I began gasping for air from laughing so hard. "Oh man. I can't breathe! Too funny! Too fucking funny!"

Ellis asked Sheila, "What's so funny?"

She smiled while she shook her head, "I don't know. This is the Chris I truly know: weird and fun."

Nick looked up at her and smiled, "I like this new Chris."

I stopped my laughing fit and sat up holding my ribs. "Sweet Jesus. Oh sweet Jesus. That was rich."

He chuckled, "Well, I'm glad no one had a camera phone on them for that moment."

I looked up at him and replied, "If I did, that sucker would've got on YouTube."

He smirked as he shook his head, "I would stop you for doing so."

I spoke challengingly, "Oh really? Is that a threat or a promise, Nick?"

He moved closer to me, "Depends, sweetheart."

I blushed at him, which made him smile. Sheila saw this and began giggling like a fan girl. We both looked up at her with confused looks on our faces. "Why are you giggling like a die-hard Twilight fan that just saw the guy who plays Edward?"

She pointed to both of us and replied, "I saw you blushing and you smiling. I sense a connection!"

I scoffed, going back to my gruff attitude, "Fat chance, Sheila."

She smirked, "Did you know that Nick kissed your cheek last night?" Nick's face paled again while I gasped. Everyone's attention was on Sheila at this point. She continued, "Hell yeah, I saw it with my own two eyes."

I blushed while Nick chuckled nervously. "Is that so?" I asked while eyeing Nick.

"Yeah. Sheila's right. I did kiss you", the con man whispered, barely loud enough for me to hear.

Ellis, Ro, and Coach began snickering when they saw me blush harder while touching my cheek. "That'll explain why my cheek felt so warm last night."

The team's snickering evolved into belt-out laughing. Nick and I blushed fiercely. Sadly, the moment was killed when the roars of the zombies outside the parlor. "Time to go, y'all", Coach announced.

We bolted out of the parlor and began to kick some more zombie ass. Nick was still in a little pain, but at least he was near me. I was going to protect him until we get back to the car. At this point, I don't think I can get rid of Nick. He's mad in love with me and there's no way to deny or severe that fact. Even if I crushed him like a bug, he'll still love me. Despite my cold exterior towards him, my heart is beginning to slip. I don't want to fall for Nick, but at this point, I think it may be unavoidable.

The group was led down into the basement of a jazz club, which took us into a network of sewers. We didn't know either until Ellis hopped down and landed with a splash. "Eww. Gross man", he grumbled.

Despite that sewer water, we followed Ellis down. I nearly twisted my ankle on the fall. Sheila sadly landed on her feet, but to absorb the shock, she went to her knees. "Urgh! Gross!" she whined.

I held in a snicker, but Ellis gave me a small hit in the shoulder. "Ow. Ok. I deserved that."

We took a step deeper inside, when a Tank attacked us. "Shit!" Ro shouted as we scattered. The Tank went after Ellis and Sheila, since they were the closest targets. As they fled away from the Tank, running deeper into the sewer, the rest of us opened fire on the brute. Sadly, the Tank charged towards Nick and was a tad bit too slow. The Tank swung his huge arm and knocked the wind right out of him.

"Nick!" I barked as I threw my axe into the Tank's back. It roared in pain, but didn't die. It faced me, but a quick Molotov from Coach brought it down to its knees. "Thanks, Coach."

"No problem, Chris", he replied. He helped Nick get to his feet. "Are you ok, Nick?"

He answered groggily, "I'll live."

"Walk it off. Let's find the others", Coach replied as he reloaded his shotgun.

I snarkly stated, "Unless they can fly back up from where we came from, my guess would be that way." I pointed deeper into the sewer.

Nick rolled his eyes and replied, "Lead on, sweetheart."

I growled, but didn't bother answering him. The three of us fight through the gross sewer water and quickly reunited with our comrades on a dry platform. I asked, "Are you guys ok?"

Sheila nodded as she gripped my shoulder, "Yep. But I can't say the same for your shirt."

I looked down and noticed how torn apart my shirt was. I grumbled, "I sure hope a Hunter doesn't finish my shirt. This horror movie doesn't need nudity."

Nick hung back for a second to heal, while the others began to open the gate. Once the gate opened, the alarm blared, alerting all the zombies in the sewer. As soon as I looked in that general direction to jump down, I got pounced.

"Shit! Hunter!" I screamed as my body struggled under the monster's massive frame. Strangely, he was stronger than the other Hunters and had much longer claws, like a witch. Instead of wearing a hoodie, he wore a worn out camo jacket, showing his facial figures better than the other Hunters. His eyes were pale and cold as ice, which surprised me. Normally, Hunters have no eyes at all. He almost looked like a survivor, but sadly, he wasn't.

I tried to push him off, but I was weak compared to his strength. Using his long, sharp claws, he scratched my torso and the rest of my shirt was completely ripped off my body. I shrieked in horror, while the Hunter lowly growled and swung his claw back to make another slice into my torso.

Nick leaped up the ladder and slashed his katana against the Hunter's face. The Special Infected yelped as he rolled off my body and held his slashed cheek. He locked eyes with Nick, who was ready to slash him again if he dared to attack. The Hunter hissed as he suddenly vanished in a cloud of smoke. Nick blinked and did a double take. "Are we fighting ghosts now?"

I sat up, shaking. If I hated anything about being a woman was that the chance of getting raped was far greater than guys getting raped. My courage completely disappeared. My fiery attitude vanished. I was scared for the first time in this apocalypse.

Nick sheathed his katana and helped me to my feet. "Chris? Are you ok?" I clung onto him as if my life depended on it. Nick blushed slightly at my actions and the fact that I was only wearing a sports bra now. I stared at the remains of my shirt in horror as I began shaking. Nick wrapped his arms around my jittery frame and soothed in my ear, "It's ok. I've got ya, sweetheart. I won't let him get ya." I nodded as I finally tore my glare away from the shreds of fabric.

Nick loosened his grip on me and whispered, "We need to dash to the next safe room. Keep it together until we can get there. Ok? Think you can do that?" I nodded as I cleared my throat and pulled out of his arms. He smiled a genuine smile as he passed my AK to me. I took it and smiled back.

I took a deep breath and hopped down back into the sewer water. Nick followed closely behind me, guarding me in case that Hunter Houdini came back for more. We didn't stop running until we found a ladder that lead us back onto the catwalk, but after a long stretch of the walk broke and forced us back into the water. "Keep going!" Nick commanded as we leaped off the edge of the broken path back into the raw sewage. I didn't slow down for anything. If I did, I was afraid that he would come back and pin me under the shit water and rape me.

Thankfully, we found a ladder which led us onto dry land. Better yet, it led us to the safe room. I refused to slow down, so I basically rammed into the steel door with all my weight. It sure startled the hell out of our teammates. Sheila got out of Ellis's arms and ran to the door with a pistol in her hands. She gasped when she saw me pushing against the door, trying frantically to open it out of panic. She opened the door and I fell inside. Nick followed behind me and began panting.

"What the hell happened?" Sheila asked as she saw me without my shirt and a bloody claw mark under my bra line.

I answered while shaking, "A Hunter got a hold of me. But he looked like a survivor. He…he…" I could hardly bring myself to speak.

Nick sat down on the floor beside some boxes and replied, "She got pounced and the Hunter nearly raped her."

Everyone gasped. Ellis barked, "That's awful! No wonder you're so shakily right now, Chris."

I nodded and gulped as my attacker's eyes burned a mental picture in my mind. So cold. So icy. Nick sighed as he stood back up and opened his arms towards me, offering me a hug. I accepted it without thinking twice.

As he held me, I tried to control my breathing and my shakiness. No one dared to make a snide comment or tease. If anyone said something, Nick would be more than happy to knock that person's lights out. My breathing became stable and my shaking began to subside. Nick let go of my body and noticed how my stomach was red with blood from the scratch.

"Damn" he hissed as he grabbed his med kit off his back. He opened it up and began to unravel the gauze. "Let Doctor Nick patch you up", he quipped as I allowed him to wrap the gauze strips around my half-naked torso. I chuckled a little as I watched him wrap over the now-scabbing scratch. With a tie of the ends, he was done.

He gave me some alcohol wipes and said, "Try to wipe as much blood off you as you can." He walked back to his corner and leaned against the wall, resting a little.

I nodded as I tore open the package and began wiping some of the drying blood off my stomach. "Thanks Nick."

He looked up and smiled, "You're welcome. I couldn't let that creature attack you like that. That's low, even for zombies."

"Yeah, but I've been a nasty bitch to you and you still like me."

He raised his finger and stated, "Correction: I love you."

I rolled my eyes at the con man, but it pained me to do so. At least he had the guts to say so. I, on the other hand, can't say for sure if I'm in love with him or not. I swallowed hard and replied, "I'm not sure if I can say the same thing."

He shrugged and closed his eyes, "It doesn't matter if you feel the same way. I've been there."

His statement made me feel sick to my stomach. Either someone has loved him and he didn't love her back or vice versa. My heart actually sank under that discovery. I sighed half-heartedly and said, "I'm very thankful for what you did Nick. And I…"

"Chris, underneath that macho act you love to uphold, I saw a helpless woman."

Sheila gulped as Nick said 'helpless.' "Oh no. Nick, take that back or you'll deeply regret that."

The con man looked at Sheila and asked, "Why?"

"Because she will mess you up…badly. She's not helpless by any means."

He sat up and replied, "Alright. I take it back. It was a little harsh for me to say. But she was terrified. I'm sorry for sounding so straightforward, but…"

"It's alright, Nick", I interrupted, startling both him and Sheila. "That moment made me scared for the first time this shit started. But, I'm not helpless. Never was and never will. And I'll prove that." I took my AK and grabbed some ammo from the table.

Sheila smiled and hopped to her feet, "Atta girl, Chris! A fighter to the end!"

I smirked, "Damn straight!" I turned to Ellis and quipped, "Let's reunite you with your car."

The redneck beamed and sprang towards the ammo table, "You read my mind, Chris! Let's go!"

Nick rolled his eyes at Ellis and stood up. Coach and Ro, who were taking a small nap, woke up seconds later. The fact that I was shirtless startled both of them.

"What happened to you?" Coach demanded as he stood up and gently leaned on the wall behind him.

"Almost got raped by a Hunter" I replied as I looked down at my torso. "Nick saved me."

Rochelle stood up and gasped, "Raped? That's awful!" She turned to Nick and quipped, "Her knight in white armor!"

Both Nick and I blushed and chuckled sheepishly. I cleared my throat and stated, "It's in the past now. Now let's go meet up with Zoey and Alex."

After we got suited up for another zombie run, we left the safe room. We walked up to the bridge and saw two other survivors. Both of them were males. One of them looked like he would be biker and the other was a business man. The biker took one look at me and went wide-eyed. I snapped, "My eyes are up here, asshole."

Nick chuckled and the biker blinked and looked away. Zoey asked, "What the hell happened?"

"If only I had a dollar for every time I was asked that today", I quipped.

Zoey nodded and replied, "Touché then."

"So these are the survivors with the car?" the business man stated.

Sheila replied, "Yep. That's us!"

"Well, I'm Louis and this is Francis. I know you guys already know Zoey and Alex", the business man introduced.

I crossed my arms around my chest and replied, "Nice to meet you, Louis. Not so happy to meet you, Francis."

Francis scoffed in his defense, "It's not every day that I get to see a half-naked woman in this vampire hell."

I turned my head towards Nick and asked, "Did he say 'vampires'?"

Nick rolled his eyes and barked at the biker, "One: back off! Two: the monsters we're fighting are zombies! There's no such thing as a vampire apocalypse!"

"Go to Hell, suit", Francis hissed at the con man.

Rochelle stepped in and asked, "What do we have to do to get the bridge lowered?"

Louis answered, "You guys have to fill up the generator down below. We'll protect you from up here."

Alex shook his head and leaped over the railing that separated us from the other survivors. "I'm going to help you guys. I mean, Ellis is my bro. The only family I still got. Time to join you guys."

Sheila giggled, "I guess Chris isn't going to be the only one sitting on someone's lap this time."

"Very funny", I quipped while rolling my eyes.

Ellis embraced his brother into a manly hug and replied, "Welcome aboard lil' bro!"

Coach laughed, "The more the merrier! Come on, y'all. Let's start up the generator."

We all piled into the elevator and heard Nick groan, "First, we fill up Gibby's car with gas and now a generator. What next?"

Ellis was about to open his mouth, when Nick saw him and quickly added, "Don't answer, Ellis." Ellis shrugged in response.

Once the elevator reached the bottom, we all leaped out of it and split up into teams. Nick, Ro and I were on one team, while Sheila, Ellis, Coach and Alex were on the other. "Let's do this thing!" Sheila barked as we ran to find gas cans.

My team ran into the bar and saw a jukebox. I ran over to it and pushed a random button. The song that began to play was 'Nightmare' by Avenged Sevenfold. Nick and I spoke in unison, "Some music to kill by."

Realizing we spoke the same thing at the same time, we faced each other and chuckled a little. Ro quipped, "I see a match."

"Shut up, Ro", I replied while blushing. "It's their fucking nightmare!"

All three of us ran up stairs and found two gas cans. I grabbed one while Ro grabbed the other one. Nick covered us as we carried them across the street and to the generator. Ro poured hers first and then I poured mine inside. "Two down", I stated as we tossed the empty cans to the side.

Suddenly, Nick got snared by a Smoker. "Shit. Smoker!" he barked while the Smoker began to rile him in. I ran up to con man and shot the tongue around his waist. He fell backwards as the tongue slacked. I looked up and the Smoker hobbled away, fearing that he would get shot.

"Thanks, Chris", Nick said as I helped him up to his feet.

I replied, "You're welcome."

Ro came running to us and spoke, "Come on, guys. Let's get more cans before we get too overwhelmed."

We nodded and began running up the road and got attacked by a Tank. "Shit! Go back!" I barked as all of us opened fire on the infected giant. It roared as it charged towards us. We led it towards Zoey, Francis, and Louis, who had a machine gun. "Guys! Blast this thing!" I shouted at them.

"On it!" Zoey shouted back as all three survivors began pelting the Tank with ammo. Louis did the most damage to it, thanks to the gun he was using. Nick was impressed when the Tank finally went down. "Louis! You're a badass with that gun!" Louis looked down on Nick and gave him a thumbs up.

Francis barked at me, "Yo! Babe!"

I looked up and saw him address to me. "The name's Chris, Francis!"

"Sorry, Chris. Take this. I won't be needing it", he replied as he tossed down Boomer bile.

I beamed as I picked it up and attacked it to my belt, "Thanks, Francis!"

Ro saw the others running towards the generator with three cans of gas. "That's five in", she announced to us.

Nick nodded, "Alright. Let's go."

We went into the building behind the generator and noticed a body of a survivor. All three of us sighed and gave him a moment of silence.

A small growl broke the silence, causing all of us to freeze in place. Appearing on top of the generator to the bridge was the Hunter/survivor. I gasped loudly as I bolted out of the building as fast as I could. He clearly had no interest in Nick or Ro. He crouched, but leaped over them, not pounce.

"What the hell was that?" Ro asked Nick.

He reloaded his gun and growled, "That's the Hunter that attacked Chris."

Ro gasped while placing her hand over her mouth. "We gotta take that bastard down."

"One step ahead of ya", Nick growled as he ran out of the room and back outside.

Outside, I was running and gunning, adrenaline fueling my blood as I ran up the street with that Hunter on my heels. He suddenly appeared in front of me, causing me to stop running. Sadly, in order to do that, I had to trip over my own two feet and fall nearly face-first against the asphalt. I felt his strong frame loom over me. Chills were shooting down my spine as I heard him lowly grunt. He actually grabbed my left arm with his long claw and pulled me to my feet.

In a panic, I wasn't thinking clearly. I didn't know what he was planning to do, but my instinct told me to fight him and get some distance between us. I kicked him in the sternum with all my might. His long claw slashed the skin away from my arm as he stumbled backwards from me. I screamed in agony as I saw my left arm in bloody shreds to the bone. As he casually rubbed his chest where I kicked him, the Hunter looked at the damage he did to my arm. His facial figures remained neutral to my surprise.

Thinking fast, I tossed my AK down on the ground and unclipped the Boomer bile off my belt and smashed it against his head, spilling the foul liquid all over his body. Disgusted, he literally stuck his tongue out and spat, "Urgh!"

Losing blood fast with every second, I picked up my AK and began to run back towards the generator. The Hunter, however, wasn't going to give up so easily. He snarled and leaped over my head. I gasped, but saw a horde towards us. The Boomer bile all over my adversary attracted them. I spoke calmly, "I'd run if I were you."

He cocked an eyebrow at me in slight confusion. I pointed over his shoulder, causing him to look behind. He yelped as he saw the horde charging towards him. He bolted past me, trying to speak with a stream of grunts and growls, "What grr clever grarrl you are. Grmm not over!" At times, I'm actually glad I got scratched; since I can almost understand some zombie speak. Quickly piecing it together, I depicted his sentences. He said, "What a clever girl/woman/bitch you are. It's not over!"

I let my eyes glaze over for a second and saw a small orange item. Focusing my eyes again, I saw the item to be a gas can. I weakly smiled and jogged over to grab the can. Once I grabbed it with my good arm, I finally noticed how dizzy I got. "Damn. Pull yourself together. You've had worse when you're buzzed on coke."

Nick and Ro finally turned the corner and gasped over the condition of my arm. Nick ran over to me and lightly grabbed my upper arm, "That Hunter did this didn't he?"

"Well, yes and no", I replied weakly.

He cocked an eyebrow as Rochelle grabbed the gas can out of my hand. "Care to explain while I try to save your arm from amputation?"

"He grabbed my arm with his abnormally long claws and when I kicked him away, he didn't loosen his grip and nearly shredded my arm apart."

"Damn, girl. That looked so bad. Worse than 'Saw'", Rochelle replied as she watched Nick take his med kit. He took the needles and thread out of the kit and ushered me somewhere safe. It was in an abandoned alley. Ro guarded the entrance from any zombies that had a need to attack us.

Nick quipped, "This is sanitary."

I chuckled a little and my knees nearly buckled. Nick held me before I fell. "Thanks. I can hardly see straight."

"That's the loss of blood. Sit down on this crate and stay with me, ok? I don't need you to pass out."

I nodded as I sat down on the crate he was referring to. He took his lighter out and heated up the needle. Pulling the thread through the loop and the lighter back into his pocket, he began to stitch my arm up. I gritted my teeth in pain as I felt the needle pierce my flesh and pull it together. "It's ok, sweetheart. Give me five more minutes and your arm will be…well…stitched up", Nick soothed as he cut the threat on the first scratch.

I nodded as I began to see three Nicks instead of one. I did a double take and went back to one again. While he began with the second scratch, I got used to the pain. "Hey, Nick?"

Without looking up from his work, he asked, "Yeah?"

"Have you done this before?"

He chuckled, "A few times. I had very rough high school days. Am I doing it wrong, sweetheart?"

"No, no. You're doing it right." He started working on the third scratch, when I stated, "You don't seem that love-stricken by me anymore."

He smirked, "I can hide it well. One of my many talents."

"Is being cocky one of them?" I quipped.

He chuckled softly and stated, "I noticed you aren't threatening to hurt or kill me in any way."

"Yeah. Well, my view towards you changed dramatically when you…"

"…saved your life", he finished.

I nodded, "Exactly. I guess Ro was right. You're my knight in white armor. Well, used to be white."

We both chuckled and Nick began working on the fourth scratch. "Almost done. Just a little bit longer."

"Alright. You know, right now, it seems almost peaceful", I replied. He nodded, until we were both startled by gun fire. I chuckled, "I did say 'almost'."

Working on the final scratch, he laughed out loud, "You did. When we get out of here, I'll never take 'peaceful' for granted again."

"You and me both, Nick."

Snapping the last thread, he smiled, "All done. How do you feel?"

Gently flexing my forearm and wincing, I answered, "I'll live and hopefully keep my arm intact. Thank you." I quickly leaned in and gave Nick a quick peck on the lips. He was shocked, but his expression quickly changed to happy. I quickly wrapped my arm around in gauze to protect the stitches and popped open a bottle of pills to kill the pain. "Nice. Come on. Let's get out of here."

Nick was too happy to answer me, but he did nod and pick up his gun. I stood up and thanks to the pills, I wasn't very dizzy anymore. I grabbed my Magnum and ran up behind Rochelle. She looked at me and grinned, "Ready to rejoin this party?"

I grinned back, "Oh hell yeah!"

She moved forward, allowing me and Nick to get out of the alley. Zombies roared and came charging towards us. I raised my Desert Eagle and began blasting zombie heads left and right. Nick and I protected Ro while she carried the gas can. We covered her and filled in the last can into the generator. "Yes!" she beamed.

The generator kicked in and the bridge began to lower. The rest of our team came running from outside the building. Ellis shouted, "Alright, Ro! You had the last can!"

Coach was the first to notice my bandaged arm. "What happened, Chris?"

I looked down and replied with a sigh, "It's a long story. I'll explain later."

"Did that Hunter attack ya again?" Sheila asked.

I nodded, but my eyes turned towards the bridge, which was lowered completely. Alex shouted, "The bridge is down, y'all! Let's go!"

All seven of us booked it towards the car. Ellis was screaming as he ran, "I'm coming baby! I'm coming baby!"

Nick called to our new friends, "Thanks you three!"

Ro was the first to the car, so she was the one who got to the driver's seat. Ellis was close behind and asked with disappointment, "Ro, how did you end up driving?"

Sheila laughed and grabbed Ellis's arm, replying, "That's ok, Ellis. I have to sit with you anyway."

The older redneck smiled and nodded, "That's true." He slid into the left back window and Sheila followed. Alex slid into the middle. Coach and I shouted shotgun, but Coach was a little faster.

"Fuck", I grumbled.

Coach laughed and replied, "You can sit on your man, Chris."

"That's…fine…" I slowly replied, defeated.

Nick laughed and slid into the right window. "Come on." I sighed and slid inside and gingerly sat on his lap. He wrapped his arms around my waist and whispered, "Hang on." Instead of snapping at him, I blushed a little.

Rochelle hit the gas and the car went zooming forward, leaving Francis, Zoey, and Louis alone again at Rayford. However, they weren't the only ones that were left in the dust. That Hunter watched the Jimmy Gibbs Jr. speed down the road from the roof of the factory building. Slowly flexing his claws, he howled into the darkness of the night.

**A few notes before I wrap this up. One: I wanted to have Nick fall in love first, but have Chris still semi-hate him. I was just experienting on that twist of emotions. If you don't think it fits, then sorry.**

**Two: The Hunter (three guesses who!) is NOT a rapist in any way shape or form! Chris's shirt was so torn up and loose, that his scratch just ripped it off. And she over reacted a bit because of it. Once again, he's not a rapist. **

**Three: I'm perfectly aware that Chris's left arm would have lost enough blood for her to die, not get dizzy or weak. I'm not going to kill off my OC over an action she couldn't control. Whatever. Sorry if that bugs anyone.**

**Aside from these notes, I hope you guys liked it! Reviwes are nice, but not required. Peace!**


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